The BuzzFlash Mailbag
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The BuzzFlash Mailbag is updated on an ongoing basis, with the newest material and comments on top. Again, we can only post a small percentage of what is sent to us. The opinions expressed in the Mailbag are the not necessarily those of BuzzFlash. Thanks again for your email and your patience.
Dear BuzzFlash,
Hey, this headline article you sent us to is totally misleading (who would've expected that from a “liberal” newspaper).
"Democrats, who frequently cannot match Republicans' deep-pocketed donors, have virtually erased the traditional GOP fundraising advantage in many key races. In some states, they have pulled ahead." 10/18
Yes, it’s true, according to the article that lately the Dems have been keeping even with the GOPers in raising money, but that is not the whole picture. Look at what else the article says (if you read deep into it):
“But Hutchinson [R] has more than three times as much money left for the final weeks.”
“But Allard [R] ended the period with more than five times the amount Strickland had.”
“Coleman [R] has a slight cash advantage going into the final month.”
“But Talent [R]… has raised almost as much in the past three months.”
“But Thune [R] collected $1.2 million in the third quarter; Johnson raised $954,000.”
It would seem that the GOP is still way outraising the Dems and will flood the campaigns with last minute ads, etc., again! It seems that Rutgers University political analyst Ross Baker is totally mistaken when he is quoted as saying “Democrats will not lose on account of money this year” (gee, I thought the universities are liberal, too?)
What are these newspapers and universities trying to cover up?
Jeff
Subj: If we have Al-qaeda on the run, how come they are "coming after us?"
Dear BuzzFlash,
Tenent said yesterday that things are as bad as they were in Sept 2001. I thought Bush said we had them on the run and that we were "smoking the out?"
More mixed messages. How is a new department going to resolve the security issues? Another government agency with subordinate components vieing for resources and favor? That won't change with the establishment of a new agency---isn't that MORE BIG GOVERNMENT? Why not make these agencies do their jobs now. You know, it's the same thing that the NRA uses, "no new laws, just enforce the laws already on the book." Well the same applies here. It is shameful that Bush would use this issue to garner political votes. He want's American's to believe that if he doesn't get his way our security will be compromised. WELL, I JUST DON'T BUY IT!!! Our security will be at risk from now on because of our past foreign policies and our current arrogant administration. Our security was compromised when our democracy was compromised in election 2000!
Howard Greenage
Subj: Bowling for Columbine - WOW
Dear BuzzFlash,
Just saw this movie today and was completely blown away (is there a pun here?).
Even scarier--Mike's message that the media and government keeps Americans constantly in fear --has just been ratcheted up "big-time" by our unprecedented, un-American vote to pre-emptively strike another country. I wish every member of Congress could see this movie and that it gets wide distribution. If everyone who bought his "Stupid White Men" book sees this film, it could be a big hit. It would be wonderful to get some meaningful dialogue started about the dangerous wrong turn our country is taking. So, see the movie and vote for Democratic candidates on Nov. 5!!! It's our chance to begin to turn this nightmare around.
AbFabDem
Dear Buzz,
Does anyone remember when W promised his administration would not give even the appearance of impropriety?
Pamela of the Poconos
[BuzzFlash Note: We found this AP story of one of Bush's many lies, "President urges high ethical standards for new staff," at http://www.newstribune.com/stories/012201/wor_0122010055.asp]
Dear BuzzFlash,
The world is in chaos because of Bush's policies. Our economy is in shambles. Al Qaeda has regrouped and is stronger than ever, poised to attack us again. We find out that N. Korea has nuclear weapons, but we're going to attack Iraq, instead, who MIGHT have them in the future. And where is our fearless leader throughout these crises? He is on a non-stop whirlwind daily fundraising frenzy, at the expense of the taxpayers. We must put first things first and money is at the top of Bush's to-do list. And where is the media while Bush is AWOL from the White House? I haven't heard a peep out of them.
Do all of you remember when Clinton was fundraising what an uproar they caused? And that was during a period of peace and prosperity, not doom and gloom like Bush has created. The media is too busy getting their script from Karl Rove to bother with something called journalistic integrity.
Gigi
Subj: new tricks up Jeb's sleeve
Dear BuzzFlash,
This is an open letter to all Floridians to watch out for the new tactics Jeb and his brother King George are likely to pull. This time it may not be roadblocks, but they will do various things. Don't ever forget that Jeb said he had "some devious plans" to subvert the will of the voters if a class size amendment passed. Of course he tried to backpedal on that, saying he was joking, but you may recall that there was no laughter in the room. People knew very well that he was dead serious about his "devious plans". He also talked about the caretakers of the child that his administration's child protective center lost, saying he had "juicy details" about the couple. Moreover, he refused to talk to a group of African-American citizens who came a long way to speak to him. He even stated "kick their asses out" when someone said there were some visitors in his office to see him. I wonder if he realizes that is the taxpayer's office. It does not belong to him. The strangest thing about Jeb is that when he is finally confronted on these outrageous utterances of his, he claims it is ok to say those things in private. So, in effect, he is saying that he is a phony and that you should not trust his campaign promises. I don't trust him not to tamper with the voting. This time, you should block all the major routes of transportation in Florida if he tampers. It is easy. There are more Democrats than Republicans. Just get in your cars the way you courageously did with the orange ribbons several months ago and block his mansion for several hours. Surround it. Then block the major access roads. Drive into the middle of the street and get out and stand many abreast. Think the media will ignore you then? You can force Jeb to stop his criminal activities in that way, but ONLY you, YES, you Floridians can do it.
a BuzzFlash reader
Dear BuzzFlash,
A telling headline you gave there: Daschle blasts Bush, and the article says that Republicans (plural) blasted back. Where was the rest of the Dem party helping out Daschle? The GOPsters are a bunch of organized thugs. When are the Dems going to organize and start to fight?
Jeff Schwarz
Subj: Cheney
Dear BuzzFlash,
The story about Cheney's refusal to hand over energy policy documents, as ordered by the court, is truly amazing. When does this qualify as "High Crimes and Misdemeanors" and become an impeachable offense?
Rob
Moitoza
Seattle,
Wa.
Subj: Check out "Yahoo! News - Powell aims barbs at Saddam, call…"
Dear BuzzFlash,
Click Here: Yahoo! News - Powell aims barbs at Saddam, call…
Are these people in the Bush administration delusional? Colin Powell wants to make jokes about Saddam Hussein's election, like Jr. was democratically elected by the people of this country. The people in Iraq didn't have a choice on their ballots. We did and we elected Al Gore, but the "Felonious Five" on the Supreme Court overturned the winner of the presidency and installed their choice. I will NEVER "get over" the enormity of what they did. That was the day democracy died in this country. And since coronation day for King George, it has been proven over and over again what irreparable damage has been done to this country by the Bush regime. We are now no better than a banana republic with a dictator in place. The "Felonious Five" should hang their heads in shame for what they have done, or better yet be tried for treason.
Gigi
Subj: President Glovepuppet
Dear BuzzFlash:
In reading about BBC correspondent John Simpson's remarks this week about the sorry state of U.S. journalism, I was taken by his description of GW Bush -- "a glovepuppet of his vice president, Dick Cheney, and secretary of defence [British spelling] Donald Rumsfeld."
Wow, talk about hitting the dumb nail on his dumb head!
From now on, the current occupant of the White House will be "President Glovepuppet" to me. I only wish I'd come up with it first.
Richard Newton
Subj: Open letter to "George the Dimmer"
Dear BuzzFlash,
Look, Mr. Bush, why don't you stop whining about terrorism insurance and just say you want to give welfare to your rich insurance CEO friends and be done with it?
anon
Click Here: Bush Seeks to Cut Back on Raise for S.E.C.'s Co…
Buzz,
Proof that Bush is really not interested in cleaning up corporate corruption.
Gigi
Subj: Another GOP criminal going to Congress...
Dear BuzzFlash,
COUNTING ON DEMOCRACY
"...Directed by Emmy-award winner Danny Schechter, the 57-minute documentary follows BBC television reporter Greg Palast as he discovers how Katherine Harris removed up to 57,000 legal voters from registries – most black – five months before the 2000 election. While the public broadcast network chiefs refused to schedule this important report, WNET (New York), KCET (Los Angeles), KQED (San Francisco) and dozens more are insisting on showing the exposé before the mid-term elections..."
...and what do we do? Why, elect Katherine to Congress! Only in America do we exalt and reward political criminals.
R.
Johnson
Jacksonville,
FL
Subj: New Book by Daniel Ellsberg invitation to others in government to do what he did
Dear BuzzFlash,
On Aaron Brown's NewsNight on CNN, Daniel Ellsberg, the man who 30 years ago revealed in the Pentagon Papers the secrets of the unjust Vietnam War, the target of the Watergate break-in, leading to the resignation of President Nixon, said that he wrote this book to plead with people who today have information about government secrets that should be made known to the American people to do what he did -- take documents supporting the information and present them to congress -- tell the truth.
New Book: Secrets
Jackie Newberry
Subj: Rove & Rice articles
Dear BuzzFlash:
Thanks a million for linking the 10/20 NYT Magazine story on Karl Rove to your website. It speaks volumes that the pResident keeps such a cadre of unreflective and arrogant people close at hand. For this reason, you might consider linking a story in last week's New Yorker, a profile on Condoleeza Rice, that made essentially the same point about her: complete assurance that whatever she thinks is right, no doubts or second-thoughts as to which way to proceed. (This despite the fact that she has demonstrably moved from Left to Right politically over the past 20 years, and that she bet on the wrong horse & totally missed the major event in her personal field of research--the fall of the Soviet Union and the rise of Boris Yeltsin over Mikhail Gorbachev.) The profile by Nicholas Lehmann is not unsympathetic, but it does force one to question whether self-proclaimed moral zeal is really the best way to run a country.
Thanks for your work--those of us stuck in rightwingerland REALLY appreciate it!
Ann M. Little
Subj: I am a Patriot-- I am a Liberal
Dear BuzzFlash,
They say that I don’t care about the security of America because I disagree with our President. They say that my questioning our government’s policies aides the enemy. They call me an “appeaser.” I should “watch what I say.” And this makes me mad.
The Constitution gives all Americans the right to express their opinion and disagree with our leaders. We live in a republic where we elect representatives to make real our best common desires for the greater good of us all. With political discourse, a consensus is reached and the path for our nation determined. It is the duty of all good citizens to make their voices heard if democracy is to succeed.
So those who would stifle political debate or dissent are denying me of my greatest right as an American--the Freedom of Speech and right to disagree with our nation’s actions. Those who would attempt to deny me my First Amendment right to protest or question my government are acting contrary to everything this country is about. By saying the act of disagreeing or questioning our leaders is unpatriotic and somehow harmful to us all, they become the very jack booted thugs of the oppressive regimes that we all stand against. Dictators, communists and fascists don’t want their citizens to question the government. Debate is what makes democracy work.
I am a patriot. I am a liberal. I think my government is about to make a very big mistake by forcing a war in Iraq when greater dangers threaten us from all around. Disagree with me if you will, but don’t try to stop me from speaking my mind.
Those who would suppress debate and hide the truth are harming America much more than any terrorist can. Because while a terrorist may destroy property and end many lives, no bomb can ever destroy our freedom.
Freedom can only be lost with our consent. The fear that our open society makes us all vulnerable causes many of us to be willing to subjugate these freedoms for some false sense of security. But my freedom is something I’ll never give away without a fight to the death. Because that’s what it means to be an American. It’s unpatriotic to act otherwise.
So don’t be afraid to express you opinion be it liberal or conservative and get out and vote for the candidate of your choice on November 5. It’s the patriotic thing to do. And never let anyone tell you otherwise.
Mark
Salditch
Dallas,
TX
Subj: Letters: Is Bush's support "shallow"?
BuzzFlash Readers:
Please check out Colin Campbell's column which appeared on the day that Bush visited Atlanta (Atlanta Journal/Constitution, Oct.17,02). He posed some serious questions for Bush and I was surprised because I usually don't care for this writer's opinions. It was interesting because apparently Campbell was a high school classmate of the pResident in Chief. "Your support is wide, but shallow".....states Campbell. How true! If you agree that Bush's supporters are indeed shallow, write and encourage Colin Campbell at ccampbell@ajc.com.
Dee
Turner
Atlanta
[BuzzFlash Note: You can read it here.]
Subj: Does the GOP admire Al Qaeda?
BuzzFlash,
Unbelievable! Dick Armey prefers Al Qaeda's focus:
"Why is it that al Qaeda, this ragtag bunch of terrorists scattered all over the globe, can reorganize themselves ... and the U.S. government cannot reorganize itself," Armey said. "(The) difference is al Qaeda doesn't have a Senate, al Qaeda doesn't have a Senator Daschle that has other focuses. Al Qaeda has got a clear focus."
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u
=/nm/20021018/ts_nm/congress_homeland_dc_4
Wow, he admires the terrorist group which killed nearly 3,000 of our citizens. I wonder if it's their 'focus' he admires, or whether it's their 'strategery.'
CR
Subj: I've figured out Bush's obsession with Iraq!
Dear BuzzFlash,
Remember when he said 'evil' every third word for months? Well, Iraq, like evil, is a small word. Sudan, Somalia, Korea, Pakistan, and several other places that as much or more dangerous than Iraq are BIG words! Five and more letters is way beyond his capabilities.
Nancy Otero
Subj: Republicans' Social Security Privatization Arguments are Absolutely Ridiculous!
Dear BuzzFlash,
For Republicans to say they oppose Social Security privatization, but support allowing people to put some of their payroll taxes to finance personal retirement accounts, then to get the gall to turn around and accuse their Democratic critics of "scaring seniors", is just like having preachers saying they oppose prostitution, but support allowing a woman voluntarily to sell her body to supplement her income because she can't find a job to support her family, then turn around and accuse their secular critics of "scaring women into poverty." The Republican privatization rhetoric, like the hypothetical prostitution argument, is downright disingenuous, brazenly hypocritical, and utterly ridiculous.
Sue B.
Subj: Washington Post, October 20, 2002
Dear BuzzFlash,
I want to alert you to the Washington Post of Sunday, October 20, 2002, in which the Post Ombudsman, Michael Getler, discusses the refusal of the Post to publish a "Boondocks" comic strip scheduled for publication last Sunday, because the strip "played off the comments .... of a German official who compared ... Bush's tactics on diverting public opinion with those of Adolf Hitler". This is a shocking indictment of the Post's editorial policy -- they chose to suppress political comment unfavorable to Bush, and did not discuss this with the Ombudsman at the time. He was alerted to the situation after the fact, by Ombudsmen from other newspapers (who had run the comic strip). I hope you will go and read the column, and publicize it on BuzzFlash -- it could easily be missed without a tip from someone.
This is one of the most unsettling developments yet. Thanks for listening!
Pat Bragdon
[BuzzFlash Note: The article from the Post's Ombudsman is here.]
Subj: Sad Commentary
Greetings Buzz,
I am a reader of BuzzFlash by osmosis, my liberal democrat wife passes along tidbits on a fairly frequent basis. I have found much of the information here to be interesting and in some cases enlightening but this most recent piece is really upsetting. I am a republican a la Jerry Ford, not of the Bush supreme variety and I like to consider myself a rather rare breed, i.e. a “responsible republican” with a loyalty to the country more so than the party. The piece that prompted me to write to you was the letter from Donald R. Koelper of Honolulu, HI in which he quotes from a letter written by Kevin Gagan and believe me, he had me gaggin’ for sure. I am not from Hawaii and have not even visited there for over 30 years, but I am sure that is not the way most of Hawaii’s republicans and certainly not the natives feel about Patsy Mink.
Ms. Mink was a hard working loyal American that while I did not always agree with her, would never doubt her dedication to her constituents and her country. The words of Gagan do not reflect the attitudes of the republican party with which I am affiliated nor do they reflect the beliefs of any moral and responsible human being. I would not call that sort of comment as mean spirited nor simply ill-mannered; rude yes, disrespectful certainly, uncouth obviously, obnoxious definitely, vile by all means but more than that, it is Godless, inhumane and certainly the ramblings of a social degenerate that should be cast from the tribe of man and left to wander the barren wastelands of an uninhabitable region where he can associate with his own kind.
But that is just the opinion of a Responsible Republican,
Jack
Boone
Sarasota,
FL
Dear BuzzFlash,
"Today Christians ... stand at the head of Germany ... I pledge that I never will tie myself to parties who want to destroy Christianity .. We want to fill our culture again with the Christian spirit ... We want to burn out all the recent immoral developments in literature, in the theater, and in the press - in short, we want to burn out the poison of immorality which has entered into our whole life and culture as a result of liberal excess during the past ... (few) years." - Hitler
*The Speeches of Adolph Hitler, 1922-1939, Vol. 1 (London, Oxford University Press, 1942), pg. 871-872.
John Ashcroft would qualify for his agenda
George
Subj: Media--For the Public Good, or al-qaeda's good?
Dear BuzzFlash:
The Media can fairly be described as bin Laden's stooge. He wished to keep Americans in terror; they highlight our vulnerabilities all day, every day.
They speculate for hours on end about which gruesome way terrorists might get us. I think of the CNN host a while back who said "Still, it's all just speculation. But would anyone on the panel care to speculate on this speculation?" Of course they did, and it was scary!
Maybe Media's only wish is to make money. Nonetheless, they behave as servants to al-qaeda. The first doesn't make the second go away. It just means Media is getting paid while performing exactly the part bin Laden had assigned them in his plan.
And it doesn't stop with aiding al-Qaeda Media's assault on America applies to matters of our self-governance as well, and in two ways.
First, as Washington and others warned, fear-mongering inclines the Public to hasty and poorly considered actions, and the ground is prepared for demagogues to take advantage of the situation. Media's constant fear-propaganda seriously disables the ability to have informed and reasoned discussion and to recognize political frauds.
Beside this active assault on our national psyche, major stories about our national well-being go entirely unexamined. For example, in the first 18 days of the DC snipers attacks, more than 3,500 people have been killed in US hospitals by preventable errors. Are we supposed to believe that if there were daily headline stories about this--logos, theme song, breathless reporters--the public wouldn't really care?
Second, the fact is that "Media" is just another name for "Corporation." Our situaton is this: Media charges political candidates so much money for access to the public that candidates must beg money from Corporations. Then Corporate Media decides who is a legitimate candidate, how much air-time that person will get, and whether they will be treated favorably, brutally, or simply dismissed. In sum, Media, with it's related Corporations, decides who can run for office long before the Public has any say. We get to pick which "flavor" of Puppet we prefer.
Add it up: the Media helps al-Qaeda spread terror in America (on slow nights they'll use children for the effect). The Media promotes just that frame of mind that undermines good self-government and the national interest. The Media ignores things which the Public needs to know. The Media destroys our electoral system.
The question, until now unasked in America, "Is the Media serving the Public Good or is it an enemy of our nation and its people?" I think this is an urgent question, and with an obvious answer. We shall have no progress in America until we have--let's be frank--glasnost for the USA.
Perhaps glasnost will begin if people contact the FCC, Congress, and various news reporters, and ask them this question.
Jim P
Subj: George W. ENRON
Dear Buzz,
A while back, in response to "Duh"byah's waffling on a issue (I believe steel tariffs), Fat Boy Rush called him George W. Algore, in order to slander Gore at the same time.
Would you please pass on to your affiliates that Bush, who so far has been able to bury his association with Ken Lay, etc. should be REGULARLY tagged with the moniker,
"George W. ENRON"
Keep up the good work.
Best,
Frank "Dr. Harp" Matuk
